She looked around as Daryl showed off the make shift bed in the slightly musty scented tent. The day had been a long one to be sure, the late morning hunting incident was still fresh in their minds and although they had skinned and boned and put all of the board to use there wouldn't be enough to keep the camp fed for more than a few days. Eralyn had had the idea to make fish and crayfish traps in the lake and of course it was Eralyn who cut her fingers open on the wire. Much to Dr Dixson's displeasure.

"That was my bag but you can have it till I find Merle, I'll just use his," he said smiling lopsidedly as he offered her the soft sleeping bag, not trusting her delicate form with anything that had once been Merle's.

"Thanks Daryl," she mumbled as he showed her around the tent, she carried her weapons with her for safety at all times, much like he did. Each belted in around her hips, so when they realized she wouldn't be able to unbuckle them due to her plastered fingers they looked at one another and burst into a fit of nervous laughter.

Daryl who wasn't nearly as clumsy as Eralyn held her perfectly still for a moment before he unbuckled both harnesses. Each nestled on her hip and he was somewhat relieved for it.

"I think that'll be right," he murmured, their skin was touching and Eralyn's blush had worked its way to her chest and ears, Daryl's fingers brushed the side of her throat where her skin had finally healed it was silvery and hard against the soft cream flesh .

"Thank you," she whispered, snaking her arms around him as she rested her chin on his shoulder. The stubble tickled her skin and for a moment she was truly happy, not just to have him here, because he was her best friend and most trusted companion, because he understood her and because he made her feel at home.

"We should sleep." He stuttered surprised at her gesture of affectionate thankfulness.

Eralyn agreed quietly before blowing out the candle, even in the dark they could both see rather well Daryl turned away removing his shirt and pants before lying down under the mesh blanket, from his spot he was able to see her as she pulled off her shoes and socks her whimsical nature was written in every fibre of her being the way her toes wriggled and the sway of her hips as she pulled off the dirty jeans revealing a pair of boxers, He didn't look away once as she pulled the over coat and t-shirt off, She was finally comfortable in her boxers and singlet, and he was ashamed to say he had watched her undress, the moon crept in through the side window illuminating her form through her clothing, before she settled down to sleep.

When Eralyn woke up the next morning she really wished she hadn't, the sun was filtering in through the mesh in a most unpleasant way and no matter which way she tilted her head the blinding rays were there. She sighed huffily before turning over and bumping into Daryl's bare back, although comfortable the sleeping bags gave no indication of his side or her side.

"You're a fucking loud morning person, you know that" Daryl groaned rolling over grumpily, giving her no time to admire his tattoo's or scars.

She smiled at him teasingly "And you're not?"

"Not as loud as you," he chuckled.

"Are too,"

"Am not,"

"Are toooooo,"

They continued to bicker and tease until the thought of staying in bed all day was fast becoming a reality.

"I'm going to help the girls with the laundry today you want anything cleaned?" Eralyn smiled pulling on the last of her clothes.

"Uh yeah, that little pile there," he said getting up and pulling on his shirt. "I'll come with you and help,"

"You don't have to," she smiled slipping out as be began to make her way to where her own pile of clothing was hiding just inside the Rv, placing Daryl's in the basket.

He caught up rather quickly, Dale and Rick snickered to each other as they watched Daryl hop across the camp pulling on his boots and catching up to her, from where she had already collected her laundry, as well as Carl and Sophia who held her vacant hand as they walked.

"But I want to," he said seriously, patting Carl's head.

"Why?" she chuckled as Sophia made Eralyn hold her hand as she spun like a ballerina.

"Just accept my help, God!" he laughed.

…

How had the day turned so sour, so quickly? Of course Eralyn already knew the answer to that question the second it constructed itself in her mind. The days were all sour, all bad and it didn't take much to turn a bad day into a complete catastrophe.

There had been a moment after the group had packed the camp away that she was able to find solace in the road, a brief flicker of happiness as she sped through the empty asphalt stretch of highway. Windows down to let in the air and drive her long curls mad, Daryl riding his bike slightly ahead as they raced the space between their vehicle's lessening as she pumped the gas and the beast beneath her sped forward. The group trailed a hundred meters behind but that suited both of them just fine, a little friendly competition made the world a whole lot less nasty. A glimmer of normality before the complete shitstorm that was their lives came crashing in.

Before the graveyard traffic Jam.

Before the heard of flesh munching walkers.

Before Sophia had run and gotten herself lost.

She wondered how Daryl and the others were getting on with looking for the little girl, when Rick had come back to camp for help of course she had been the first to volunteer after Carol. But both Rick and Daryl had said it would be best for her to stay behind and watch over the others and of course she did, but she didn't like it. She sat cross-legged and from her position atop the RV, Riffle in hand she could see in almost every direction save behind her which she rectified with a quick search every minute or two.

Eralyn could hear the men in the underbrush before she watched Shane and Glenn shuffle out of the trees and onto the highway, they made eye contact for a second and as always her distaste for Shane was clear.

"How's it going up there?" Glenn called as he made his way towards the steam billowing RV.

"It's going good, I heard Dale use a cuss word," She smiled back poking her head over the rails to show both Glenn and Dale her face of mock disappointment.

"I've almost fixed it," The older man said in a defensive tone.

"And which Cuss word did he use?" The youth joked back in a fatherly voice as he climbed the back of the motorhome to sit watch with her.

"The Eff word," She chortled still looking down at Dale and all three laughed.

…..

Eralyn had no idea how Carol felt and as the heart wrenching sobs the older woman thought she had been concealing echoed down the Winnebago like the push of an angry ocean he hoped she never would.

Daryl's arm made for a good pillow as they rested on the floor but between Carol's pain filled whimpers and Shane's none too quiet gun inspired arts and crafts session it was clear neither would be getting any sleep.

Both of them had decided to stay in the RV to support Carol as well as to be a bit safer, but there was a sense of safety and reliability Eralyn had begun to feel with Daryl that didn't require a shelter over their heads.

There was a slight rustling from outside as Dale adjusted in his chair above them, the almost silent creek of wood stilled Shane's neurotic behaviour and even quietened Carol for a moment as they all hoped to hear Sophia's return.

Daryl's fingers curled around her shoulder as they both strained to listen the seconds drained on like years and Eralyn could feel his breath on her forehead as each passed, he smelt a little more metallic than normal but this was no doubt because of the walker's he had taken down that day while looking for Sophia.

The thought of the little girl out in woods on her own made Eralyn shudder internally.

"What r'you thinking 'bout?" Daryl's gravelly whisper permeated her silence.

"What?"

"You're making that face you do, what's on your mind?" she could feel him shuffling so that he was propped up on one elbow and when she opened her eyes he was inches away looking at her with what she could only describe as a Daryl look, Two parts concerned one part asshole and one-hundred percent tired.

"I was.. Thinking about what happened today," she whispered back as quietly as possible. "And about Sophia,"

"That little girl is going to be okay," and from the tone in his voice he believed it.

"But how can you be so sure, I mean this morning she was helping us with the laundry and now she's out there on her own." Eralyn's eyes searched his because in truth she was very doubtful and she wanted to believe it as much as he did.

"I just am..C'mon let's try to get some sleep,"

Eralyn nodded as he lay back down allowing her use of his arm as her pillow again before she drifted to sleep, wondering over the Sassy-faced-Dixon.

Daryl smiled down at her from under his eyelashes observing the way her hips curved down to her thigh and then her knee, He watched her as she shifted and noted the way Shane looked over at her tits momentarily. 'Breasts' he thought suddenly and practically slapped himself as he closed his eyes firmly.

He could hear her slow breaths, she mumbled in her sleep sometimes and he was thankful she was silent tonight he hated it when she had bad dreams and on top of his own anxiety about finding Sophia a frightened Eralyn would not make the situation better. He thought for a long while as he tried to sleep, about Sophia, about the walkers and about Eralyn.

The little creature must have sensed his thought progression because she rolled towards him in her comatose state, her hand pressed against his chest as her nose brushed the skin over his throat. The contact made him uncomfortable, not in an 'EW get off me way' but in an 'oh god she's so sweet when she sleeps' kind of way which he would never admit to thinking. When he finally had calmed himself enough to sleeping he had reclaimed some of the floor and even taken to cuddling Eralyn, God save him.

:

A/N Check it out another chapter (finally) I'm so sorry uni has just sort of taken over and I was finding this chapter really difficult to write for plot reasons.
Much Darylyn.